A few months ago, I wrote a blog post about who is moving in and out of Ohio. The results were mostly a story about age and income: older and younger Ohio residents move out of Ohio most frequently, presumably for either job opportunities or retirement. This kind of analysis is easy to do using data from the American Community Survey, which asks respondents about their current state of residence and their state of residence in the previous year. With this information, we can look at the demographics of who is moving in and out of different states.
I first looked at Ohio because that’s where a lot of our analysis is focused on at Scioto Analysis (and I live in Ohio myself). Another state that is equally interesting is California. It’s the most populated state in the country, and California is vastly different from Ohio. Additionally, between 2020 and 2024, the population in California decreased, just one of seven states that experienced a population decline across the United States.
Where are California residents moving?
According to American Community Survey data, around 315,000 households moved out of California between 2023 and 2024. Among these movers, the most common destinations were Texas, Arizona, Washington, Nevada, and New York.
The average age of residents moving out of California among the top ten destinations is between 31 and 47, with the youngest movers going to New York and the oldest moving to Nevada. The average age of California residents who remain in the state is about 40, meaning that the age of residents leaving California is not substantially different from those who are staying.
The average income of California residents who move out of the state is between $43,000 and $93,000 among the top ten state destinations. The states with the lowest average incomes for California emigrants are Oregon, Idaho, Arizona, and Nevada, with incomes ranging between $43,000 and $59,000. Three of these states border California, with Idaho only two states away. This trend might imply that lower earners who cannot keep up with the high cost-of-living in California choose to move out of the state to lower cost-of-living areas. Such residents who choose to relocate might be choosing nearby states to keep relocation costs low or stay relatively close to home.
On the other hand, the highest earners are moving to Florida, New York, and Washington, with average incomes ranging from $80,000 to $93,000. New York and Florida are both common states for workers to move to, and it’s likely that mid- or late-career professionals are moving for better job opportunities or retirement prospects.
The trend of California emigrants moving to Washington, however, is more unique, and it is most likely explained by the significant tech hub located in both states. Over the past several years, it has become common for tech workers, especially from Los Angeles or the Bay Area, to move to Washington. This is primarily because tech workers from California can earn similar wages in Washington without paying state income taxes. California has the highest individual state income tax in the country, while Washington has zero state income taxes.
Who is moving into California?
According to the American Community Survey, around 184,000 households moved into California between 2023 and 2024. Among these movers, the most common destinations are Texas, New York, Arizona, and Washington.
The average age of movers to California among the top ten states is between 32 and 46, with the youngest movers coming from New York and the oldest movers coming from Oregon. Similar to migrants out of California, individuals moving into California do not have drastically different ages than pre-existing California residents.
The state with the lowest average income, by a wide margin, is Oregon, with an average income of about $43,000 for individuals moving from Oregon into California. This trend is most likely due to Oregon’s proximity to California. However, Oregon also had the highest average age of movers into California. This seems counterintuitive; I would expect most older individuals to be older professionals moving for job opportunities or retirement. However, the relatively low income of individuals from Oregon moving to California might imply that many of these movers are relocating for personal or family reasons.
Movers to California from Illinois and Virginia boast the highest average incomes, with both states exceeding $100,000. This trend is likely explained by these states’ proximity to major cities. Chicago’s location in Illinois and Washington D.C.’s proximity to Virginia could mean that movers out of these states are high-earners in lucrative industries. These movers could be looking for better job opportunities or similar job opportunities with better weather in California.
One distinct difference between individuals who move to a state like Ohio and individuals who move to California is income. Movers to California have incomes nearly double that of movers to Ohio. Regardless of who is moving to California, they must have incomes high enough to keep up with the high cost of living in the state.
